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It's Fun to Play the Piano ... Please Pass It On!

I can't tell you the pass mark, as I'm only Grade 8. For practising, I set myself goals. I usually practise around 2 hours a day, warming up with scales before mastering 5 - 10 bars of a piece. If the practising becomes tiresome, I just take a break and relax for a bit. But just think of the reward for all the hard work when you can play a piece all the way through, that is the most rewarding feeling

I, personally, don't need to be inspired to practice; I look forward every day to my morning practice session from 9:00 to 12:00.

A deadline, whether self-imposed or imposed externally, is often a good incentive to practice.

As for questions about RCM requirements, you could a) ask your teacher or b) get a copy of the Piano Syllabus. Those of us who have the Syllabus have to look up answers there. All your RCM-related questions will be answered in the Syllabus.

As Juli says, 60 is pass minimum for Grade 10, but, as a pre-requisite : "The candidate has completed the Grade 10 Piano examination with a total mark of 75 or a minimum of 70 percent in each section of the examination at least one session prior. and The candidate has completed the theory co-requisite examinations for Grade 10 with a total mark of at least 60 for each examination, at least one session prior." (RCM Piano Syallabus, 2008; p. 99)

To answer your second question, I do not need inspiration either. I enjoy practicing. In the past I had times where I was sick of practicing but I had too much pressure and needed a break. However, it has always helped me listening to pianists. When I was in college I was surprised most of the other piano students did not have pianist recordings to listen to. Today, you can go to you tube to watch some great pianists playing.

I know the answer to this! I'm a pro at RCM 10! I've taken it 3 times The key is not to put off the technical tests until the month before the exam. My other big problem was crazy hand shakiness (because I knew I hadn't practiced enough). I did pass the 3rd time. Whew! Consider the Earmaster 5.0 for ear tests, or some other ear training program. It's a good help for chords and intervals, etc.Good luck! Choose pieces you like so you enjoy practicing them.

"The candidate has completed the Grade 10 Piano examination with a total mark of 75 or a minimum of 70 percent in each section of the examination at least one session prior. and The candidate has completed the theory co-requisite examinations for Grade 10 with a total mark of at least 60 for each examination, at least one session prior." (RCM Piano Syallabus, 2008; p. 99)

I understand that you need the theory co-requisites, but what happens when you take the theory at the same time or after?

I remember taking the Advanced Rudiments in Grade 7 along with the practical, and I passed both and received a certificate. Has this changed?

LOL i'm in the same boat as Arvendragon... i've taken it twice to far... got a 69% the second time i took it...

The first time i failed horribly because i left technique until the last minute. Thakfully thouhg since the new 2008 syllabus has come out, the technical requirements aren't as hard (IHMO) as before, where you had to know practically all of the tech (scales, chords etc) for ALL of the keys! ALL OF THEM! it was ridiculous! Too much for me to handle.

The second time i did it it was still in the old syllabus but i was prepared... except i got so nervous and had memory lapses on *all* my pieces. I still passed, but not enough for ARCT (the grading mentioned above, 60 to pass, 75 minimum for ARCT or 70 in each is cofrect)

As for the theory/harmony prerequisites i *think* thye need to be completed within a year of each other? That seems a little odd to me but i think they just changed it... it used to be that you had a few years to complete it, because I had my grad 4 harmony and grade 4 history completed when i was 15 and didn't do my grade 10 piano until i was 18.

Hope this helps and good luck! Eventually i keep telling myself i'm going to go again for my grade 10.... but it's been over 7 years since the last time i tried :S

_________________________Mordent Music - Offering Piano and Music Theory Lessons in Windsor, Ontario

[...]As for the theory/harmony prerequisites i *think* thye need to be completed within a year of each other? That seems a little odd to me but i think they just changed it... it used to be that you had a few years to complete it, because I had my grad 4 harmony and grade 4 history completed when i was 15 and didn't do my grade 10 piano until i was 18.[...]

The current syllabus states that

"Certificates are awarded to candidates who successfully complete the requirements for their grade. Beginning in Grade 5 certificates are awarded after the theory co-requisites for that grade have been successfully completed. Theory co-requisites must be completed within five years of the original practical examination." (Piano Syllabus, 2008; p. 123.

I just got the Syllabus today, and I found I needed FIVE songs (no teacher). I'm glad I had picked a song from that section to play with.

I'll be playing the Prelude and Fugue in E Flat Major (Bach, BWV 876), the Sonata in D Major (Hadyn,Hob. XVI:33), Momente Musical (Schubert, Op. 94, D870, No. 2), I've been practicing two songs from D so I guess I'll pick before the exam, and Variations in A Minor (Kabalevsky, Op. 40, No.2)

I'll return to the original question - "how to practise better?" and offer some ideas that I wished I had used back in the days when I did my Gr 10 and ARCT exams (though I did manage to get thru both of them in one pass!)- Practising isn't about time spent - it's clearly about focus. I spent 10 days at a music workshop in France this summer and one of the themes discussed many times was the idea that we have to practise with specific goals in mind. So before you just dive in, think about what you are trying to achieve in a particular practise session. You will find that you can make major improvements without spending anywhere near as much time.- for problem sections work both forward and backward from the most difficult spot to gain confidence- remember practising and playing are two different things. Yes, as you work towards an exam or recital you have to be able to pull it all together, but even then you can focus on working on specifics. Have a large scale plan in mind - what effect are you trying to convey in certain passages and pieces. Think about the plan and layout of the entire piece. I use the idea of a roadmap with different turns and directions when I'm working with my 8-yr old daughter to pull larger pieces together (she's working toward her RCM Gr5 exam) and this helps fix a plan in place. You might come up with other things that work for you (and it might be different for different types of works).

I'll return to the original question - "how to practise better?" and offer some ideas that I wished I had used back in the days when I did my Gr 10 and ARCT exams (though I did manage to get thru both of them in one pass!)- Practising isn't about time spent - it's clearly about focus. I spent 10 days at a music workshop in France this summer and one of the themes discussed many times was the idea that we have to practise with specific goals in mind. So before you just dive in, think about what you are trying to achieve in a particular practise session. You will find that you can make major improvements without spending anywhere near as much time.- for problem sections work both forward and backward from the most difficult spot to gain confidence- remember practising and playing are two different things.

Such Sage advice! I agree completely. I read the book "Improve Your Piano Playing" by John Meffen and it was such a revelation to me. I wish that I had been taught the skills he was advocating when I was 10 rather than in my late 30's. My practice has changed as a result and a lot of what I do is more cerebral now, I think about what I am trying to achieve and what I am trying to convey and how I am going to achieve that goal. Consequently, practice is not really about playing a piece from beginning to end anymore. It is so much more than that.